Lähellä.fi
  • Lähellä.fi and FSC

Describing Non-Governmental Organisations' Activities – Opportunities with Lähellä.fi and the FSC

An integration has been implemented between the Lähellä.fi online service, which compiles information about the services provided by NGOs, and the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC). From Lähellä.fi, basic organisational information is transferred to FSC, along with the activity announcements under the categories “Support and Help” and “Hobbies and Leisure” that indicate long-term activities. However, information from FSC is not transferred to Lähellä.fi.

NGOs can choose whether to describe their services in the Suomi.fi Finnish Service Catalogue or in Lähellä.fi. If necessary, they can also describe their information on both platforms—for example, service details in FSC and event details on Lähellä.fi. If an NGO uses FSC, the automated system prevents activities announced on Lähellä.fi from being transferred to FSC.

The Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC) is a national, centralised data repository that stores information about services and the service channels through which they are accessed. Services are described in FSC from a customer-oriented perspective using a standardised model. The data stored in FSC is open data, meaning it is freely accessible to everyone via an open interface.

Public administration organisations have a legal obligation to describe their services in FSC. NGOs also have the right to use FSC. The use of FSC is free of charge.

Lähellä.fi is a nationally and regionally operating, easy-to-use online service that helps you find meaningful activities, a sense of community, help, and opportunities to participate. The service compiles the support, activities, and events offered by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and communities in one place, while also promoting the visibility of civic activities in Finland.

Recent Updates

21.2.2025

From Tuesday 25 February 2025 onwards, the services published by non-governmental organisations on Lähellä.fi will once again be updated in real time to the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC).

A new version of the integration between Lähellä.fi and the FSC is being launched. All previously listed fixes have been implemented in the new version, except for the automatic archiving of expired services.

The automatic archiving of expired services is a new feature and will be implemented, along with other planned developments, by the end of March.

A roadmap of the FSC integration fixes is available in PDF format (in Finnish).

5.2.2025 There is a delay of a few days in the implementation of the FSC integration fixes compared to the previously announced schedule. Service descriptions and service locations are already being transferred via the integration, but due to a technical issue, the links between them are not yet being formed. We apologise for the delay and will provide updates as soon as we know when the integration will function normally. Once the fixes are in place, we will also make improvements to the integration to ensure the best possible data quality.

20.12.2024 All information transferred from Lähellä.fi to the FSC has been archived in order to remove outdated content. Unfortunately, there is a temporary malfunction in the integration between Lähellä.fi and the FSC, which is preventing new information from being transferred. The issue is being resolved and will be fixed by mid-January 2025 at the latest.

17.12.2024 There are issues this week in the service announcements transferred from Lähellä.fi to the FSC this week. These issues are due to ongoing maintenance work. To remove outdated announcements, all entries will be archived this Tuesday. Current data will be re-uploaded to the FSC on Thursday. This means that announcements transferred from Lähellä.fi to the FSC will not be visible for 2–3 days this week. We apologise for the issue!

20.11.2024 Multiple issues have been identified in the functioning of the integration. The issues are being diagnosed and will be fixed during January 2025. You can find more information by logging in and opening the message sent in the system sent on 20 November.

12.11.2024 The integration is functioning inconsistently. Several issues have been detected in its operation. These faults will be corrected during January 2025. More information will be available soon.

3.10.2024 The integration is functioning normally except for the archiving of terminated services. The archiving function will be corrected by the end of the year.

15.5.2024 An issue has been identified with the archiving of terminated services in the FSC. A fix is on the way.

12.4.2024 The integration is operating. A previous issue with Business ID validation, which led to duplicate organisations being created in the FSC, has been resolved. Issues with transferring text formats have also been fixed.

2.4.2024 A previously detected issue in the determination of regional information has been resolved. This feature will also be further developed during the spring. A small number of individual events, which were not intended to be transferred, had been passed through the interface to the FSC — this issue has now been fixed. The integration is functioning normally.

25.3.2024 The integration is operating. Some required changes have been identified, for example in the determination of regional information and the archiving of terminated services in the FSC. These issues are currently being investigated and fixed.

Frequently asked questions about the integration between Lähellä.fi and FSC (the link guides to a Suomi.fi web page)

Ensure the following:

The seamless transfer of information from Lähellä.fi to the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC) requires certain minimum standards for the data.

BUSINESS ID

Check the details of your NGO or association to ensure that the Business ID has been entered in the correct field. Also, make sure that the ID is typed accurately. Only the information of those organisations that have provided their Business ID will be transferred to the Finnish Service Catalogue.

MANDATORY INFORMATION

Ensure that all required fields have been filled in correctly and that no error messages appear on the form.

SERVICE LOCATION

If your announcement includes a physical location, make sure that an address has been provided.

If the service is provided by phone, ensure that a phone number has been entered.

If the activity is organised online, check that a web address has been added.

CORRECT CATEGORY

On Lähellä.fi, each activity announcement must be categorised into one of the following categories:

  • Support and Help

  • Hobbies and Leisure

  • Volunteering

Only listings published under "Support and Help" or "Hobbies and Leisure" are transferred to the Finnish Service Catalogue. The Volunteering category is used for volunteer tasks and events aimed at volunteers. These cannot be included in FSC and are therefore not transferred there from Lähellä.fi.

DATA QUALITY

Please ensure that the details of your activity are entered according to the instructions provided on the forms. This ensures high-quality data that can be effectively used in the Finnish Service Catalogue and in all services that draw data from it. The guidelines have recently been updated. By entering your information according to the instructions, you help people find your activity more easily.

Also, please be aware of technical system delays.

  • The information you publish on Lähellä.fi, as well as any updates to it, are not shown immediately — there is usually a delay of a few minutes.

  • Data is transferred and updated from Lähellä.fi to the FSC once a day, in the early hours of the morning. This means that anything you publish on Lähellä.fi will only appear in the FSC the following day.

  • When data is transferred from the Finnish Service Catalogue to other systems, there is usually a delay as well.

Checklist for data transferred from Lähellä.fi to the FSC

Choosing Lähellä.fi (maintained by the Lähellä network)

Lähellä.fi is an easier option, especially for NGOs with limited resources, those that rely heavily on volunteers to coordinate activities, and for NGOs that want their information to appear in local event calendars through a single listing.

•       If an NGO wants its activities to appear on Lähellä.fi, they must be described directly in the Lähellä.fi service.

•       Adopting the service is lightweight, and the user interface is easy to use.

•       It is possible to describe volunteering activities and other volunteer-related information. However, activity announcements categorised under "Volunteering" are not transferred to the FSC.

•       There are more versatile options for announcing short-term events. Short-term events are not transferred to the FSC.

•       In addition to the FSC, information is also transferred to the Eventz service, the KnowYourHoods platform, and to some municipal and wellbeing services counties' event calendars.

•       Customers are supported by the national help desk, national information sessions, local onsite support, free communications trainings, and joint marketing campaigns for NGOs.

•       Activity announcements can be retrieved via an interface and displayed in other organisations' own event calendars.

•       The minimum required data is smaller than in the FSC.

•       It is not possible to assign precise keywords to content; instead, keywords are generated automatically. You can define a theme, activity type, and description to help ensure your announcement is discoverable on websites and search engines.

•       It is not possible to specify service channels or provide summaries for them in Lähellä.fi. These details are automatically generated in the data transferred from Lähellä.fi to the FSC.

Choosing FSC (maintained by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency DVV)

Describing services in the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC) is the recommended option for NGOs that have the resources to manage operations, maintain services, and make use of data, for example, on their own websites.

·        The process of adopting the FSC is more extensive (including, for example, submitting a usage licence application and completing the FSC driving licence).

·    There are more mandatory data fields, which enable a more detailed, structured description of services.

·       The FSC guides users in producing structured, high-quality content (e.g. a text review tool and an automatic keyword generator are available).

·       Users can describe the services they provide using service classifications and keywords. These help improve discoverability on websites, and in search engine results.

·        FSC users have access to user support, training, guidance materials, and a Slack channel for information exchange.

·     Services described in the FSC can also utilise Suomi.fi quality tools.

·        Organisations intending to utilise their own data are encouraged to describe their services in the FSC. The FSC is currently used by over 120 actors, including Suomi.fi, several municipalities, 16 wellbeing services counties, omaperhe.fi, hoidonperusteet.fi, zekki.fi (in Finnish) and terveyskirjasto.fi (in Finnish).

In situations where the funding body requires services to be described in the FSC, the NGO can choose which service (Lähellä.fi or FSC) to use.
It is recommended that NGOs providing purchased services to the public sector describe their services in the Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC).

How metadata is generated

When data is transferred from Lähellä.fi to the Finnish Service Catalogue, service classes and keywords are automatically assigned in the FSC based on the theme selected in Lähellä.fi. In some cases, other fields may also influence this. Below is a list of all criteria for determining service classes and keywords. First, the theme is given, followed by the corresponding service class or keyword.

Service classes for themes under the Support and help category:

Housing -> P1.4. - Supporting housing

Digital skills + Training, event and course -> P25.7 - General education

Digital skills + Other form of activity -> P9.4. - Support services for public services users

Diversity, tolerance and minorities

  • Activity type: Peer support OR Friend and support person activities -> P4.12 - Peer, voluntary and experience activities in the social sector

  • Activity type: Training, event and course OR Guidance, counselling and crisis crisis work OR Guides and publications -> P4.13 - Counselling and guidance services in the social sector

  • Activity type: Everyday support services OR Group activities P4.14 - Auxiliary and support services complementing social services

Friends and relationships

  • Activity type: Peer support OR Friend and support person activities -> P4.12 - Peer, voluntary and experience activities in the social sector

  • Activity type: Training, event and course OR Guides -> P4.13 - Counselling and guidance services in the social sector

  • Activity type: Everyday support services OR Group activities -> P4.14 - Auxiliary and support services complementing social services

Integration and immigration -> P4.11 - Activities supporting individual integration

Mental health and wellbeing -> P5.7 - Substance abuse or mental health services

Studies and learning -> P6.14 - Financial support for studies

Sobriety and other addictions -> P5.7 - Substance abuse or mental health services

Illness and falling ill

  • Activity type: Peer support OR Friend and support person activities OR Everyday support services OR Group activities -> P5.16 - Peer, voluntary and experience activities related to health and well-being

  • Activity type: Training, event and course OR Guidance, counselling and crisis work OR Guides and publications -> P5.17 - Advisory and guidance services for health and well-being

Debt and financial issues -> P15.1 - Financial and debt advisory services for individuals

Health and wellbeing

  • Activity type: Peer support OR Friend and support person activities OR Everyday support services OR Group activities -> P5.16 - Peer, voluntary and experience activities related to health and well-being

  • Activity type: Training, event and course OR Guidance, counselling and crisis intervention OR Guides and publications P5.17 - Advisory and guidance services for health and well-being

Unemployment and employment -> P10.8 - Experience, peer and organisational activities for the unemployed

Impairment and disability

  • Activity type: Peer support OR Friend and support person activities -> P4.12 - Peer, voluntary and experience activities in the social sector

  • Activity type: Training, event and course OR Guidance, counselling and crisis intervention OR Guides and publications -> P4.13 - Counselling and guidance services in the social sector

  • Activity type: Everyday support services OR Group activities -> P4.14 - Auxiliary and support services complementing social services

Service classes for themes under the Hobbies and leisure category:

Digital technology and games -> P25.5 - Free-time services

Wellbeing and lifestyle habits -> P25.5 - Free-time services

Internationality -> P25.5 - Free-time services

  • Age group: youth -> P28.7. - International youth activities

Culture and arts -> P25.2 - Arts

Craft skills and crafting -> P25.7 General education

Nature and animals -> P27.2 - Outdoor sports and hiking

National defence -> P19.4 - National defence

Fire and rescue activities -> P19.1 Fire and rescue activities

Sports and exercise -> P27.1 -Sports and exercise

Religions, church activities, spirituality and worldviews -> P25.6 - Religious and non-confessional communities’ services

Influencing, democracy, human rights and political activities -> P8.3 - Civic participation

  • Age group: youth -> P.28.6 Services supporting young people’s societal inclusion

All announcements under the Hobbies and leisure category that target the youth (either specifically or among other target groups) are also categorised —> P28.2 - Young people's hobbies and independent activities

Keywords for themes under the Support and help category:

Housing -> residence

Digital skills -> digital competence

Diversity, tolerance and minorities -> tolerance, minorities

Friends and relationships -> families, human relations

Integration and immigration -> integration of migrants, immigration

Mental health and wellbeing -> mental health, mental well-being

Study and learn -> study, learning

Sobriety and other addictions -> intoxicants, addiction

Illness and falling ill -> illness, falling ill

Debt and financial issues -> financial issues, debt issues

Health and wellbeing -> health, lifestyle habits

Unemployment and employment -> access to employment, unemployment

Impairment and disability -> disability, physical disabilities

Keywords for themes under the Hobbies and leisure category:

Digital technology and games -> digital games, digital technology

Internationality -> internationality

Culture and arts -> culture, arts

Craft skills and crafting -> craft skills, hobby crafting

Nature and animals -> nature, animals

National defence -> national defence

Fire and rescue operations -> fire protection, rescue operations

Sports and exercise -> physical training, sports

Religions, church activities, spirituality and worldviews -> worldview, spirituality

Influencing, democracy, human rights and political activities -> influencing

More information about the integration between FSC and Lähellä.fi:

 

ptv-tuki@dvv.fi

info@lahella.fi or your regional actor in the network